What Fruits Pair Well With Which Spices?

Pairing foods is an excellent way to both enhance the flavour of the food and create a newly inspired taste. In fact, spices and herbs have been used to create new taste sensations for centuries. Fruit is usually eaten fresh or baked with sugar, but there are many other, lesser-known ways to use spices with fruit to excite the taste buds.

Oranges

Oranges are desirable for their fresh, sweet flavour and availability. They come in a wide variety of sizes, from the small clementines available in December to the larger navel oranges. Oranges pair well with other crisp-tasting spices. Try some cilantro for a taste slightly reminiscent of salsa. Dill provides a similar kick. Or, try mixing some orange juice with freshly grated ginger for a healthy and tasty drink.

Pears

Pears are loved for their tender flesh and sweet but mild and non-acidic taste. They go very well with cinnamon and cloves, according to the FoodPairing website. Pears are also enhanced with peppermint. Try arranging pears over some fresh greens and sprinkling them with cheddar cheese and cinnamon.

Blackberries

Most of us know that blackberries are delicious right off the vine, but believe or not, they are also good sprinkled with dry mustard, according to FoodPairing. Ginger and peppermint are also good spices to pair with blackberries. Try adding a bit of peppermint to your next homemade blackberry pie, or sprinkle some grated ginger on top of your blackberry cobbler before slipping it into the oven.

Apricots

Apricots are tender, bite-sized treats that are also rich in fibre. Like their cousin the plum, apricots pair very well with dill. Apricots also go well with ginger and a related spice, cardamom.